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January 18, 2011
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Worried about kids getting fat? Maybe get a dog
Sept. 21, 2010
Courtesy of St George's, University of London
and World Science staff
Children whose families have a dog spend
on average 11 less minutes per day sitting on their behinds than those without canines in the household, a study in England has found.
That’s 11 more minutes engaged in at least some physical activity
than other children. A new study may show that
getting a dog helps get children active, researchers say. But it also might simply
show that more active families are more likely to get a pooch. (Image
courtesy City of Tampa, Fla.)
The researchers said this may mean getting a dog helps get children on the move and combat childhood obesity. But it also might simply
show that more active families tend to get pooches.
“It may be a bit of both,” said epidemiologist Christopher Owen
of St. George’s, University of London, lead author of the study, published in the
American Journal of Public Health. “If children really are going for
walkies with their dog, this may be one way to encourage more kids to be active.”
Owen and colleagues studied 2,065 children aged nine to ten from schools in London, Birmingham and Leicester, U.K. The investigators used activity monitors to record the children’s daily movement levels over seven days.
About one in ten of the youngsters had dogs, and these children spent an average of 325 minutes doing physical activity per day, the researchers reported. These children were also found to take 360 more steps, or four percent,
on average than dogless kids.
“Is it that owning a dog makes you more active or that more active families choose to have a dog? It’s a bit of a chicken and egg question. Long-term studies are needed to answer it,” Owen said. “Previous studies have compared adult activity levels before and after getting a dog, and found that they do become more active afterwards.”
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Children whose families have a dog spend 11 less minutes per day sitting on their behinds than those without canines in the household, a study in England has found. That’s 11 more minutes engaged in at least some physical activity, according to the study from St. George’s, University of London. The researchers said this may mean getting a dog could help get children on the move and combat childhood obesity. But it also might simply mean that more active families are more likely to get a pooch. “It may be a bit of both,” said epidemiologist Christopher Owen, lead author of the study, published in the American Journal of Public Health. “If children really are going for walkies with their dog, this may be one way to encourage more kids to be active.” Owen and colleagues studied 2,065 children aged nine to ten from schools in London, Birmingham and Leicester, U.K. The investigators used activity monitors to record the children’s daily movement levels over seven days. About one in ten of the children had dogs, and these children spent an average of 325 minutes doing physical activity per day, the researchers reported. The youths were also found to take 360 more steps, or four percent, than the others. “Is it that owning a dog makes you more active or that more active families choose to have a dog? It’s a bit of a chicken and egg question. Long-term studies are needed to answer it,” Owen said. “Previous studies have compared adult activity levels before and after getting a dog, and found that they do become more active afterwards.”